


By The Time You Read This I Will Be Gone

by TheOneAndOnlyKey



Category: Beetlejuice - All Media Types, Beetlejuice - Perfect/Brown & King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Lydia goes from dead mom to ghost mom, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Nobody Actually Dies, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:49:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24634834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheOneAndOnlyKey/pseuds/TheOneAndOnlyKey
Summary: Lost for words, she held the girl at arm’s length, wanting desperately to ask her “What were you thinking?” or something, something to relieve the tension and stress. To understand why. But no such words came and she was left to do the only other thing she felt there was to do. Wrap the trembling girl in her arms in a mother’s embrace.- OR -What if Beetlejuice wasn’t on the roof when Lydia tried to commit suicide? What if it was Barbara who noticed the girls absence and went to check in on her?
Relationships: Adam Maitland/Barbara Maitland, Lydia Deetz & Adam Maitland & Barbara Maitland, Lydia Deetz & Barbara Maitland
Comments: 5
Kudos: 52





	By The Time You Read This I Will Be Gone

**Author's Note:**

> So... please go easy on me this is my first Beetlejuice fic. It’s mostly based off of the musical version and set during On The Roof. Please enjoy! And comment. That shit’s like crack to me.  
> If you want to reach me on Tumblr it’s @chaotic-lydia.  
> Okay, Sapien out.

“I’m alone, forsaken... invisible.” 

The words cracked in her throat. This was it. It hurt to say, in the way the truth always does. But it had to be said, her note had to be read, for what she was about to do required the utmost resolve and the truth paled in comparison. A waterfall had begun to flow down her cheeks. 

This was it: the end. 

Inhaling deeply, one foot was placed in front of the other until she was upon the edge of the roof, staring into the infinite space between herself and the floor. All too soon she would be back in her  
mother’s embrace — warm and content. Her arms a cocoon of impermeable safety she had missed more than anything. All too soon her body would decorate the lawn like an intricate Halloween ornament. The very thought brought such an uncanny blend of joy and repulsion it was enough to force her eyes closed. 

Would anybody mourn her? 

Inhale. Exhale. 

Dad?

She gently placed her note of departure upon the ground (what use is a suicide if you never get the chance to tell them why?)

Delia?

Upright, one foot began to extend towards the open space.

Adam?

She was ready to venture into the Netherworld and learn the answer to life’s great mystery. Momentum would take its course as she began to lean towards the inevitable descent. 

Barbara?

“LYDIA NO!”

Barbara! Unyielding arms wrapped swiftly around her midsection and hoisted her from midair. Clutching her gently but firmly, she was swept around until her feet met solid ground. Hands quickly roved over her arms and face in frantic movements, checking her over for any harm that may have come to her in the proceedings. 

Something fierce and protective had overcame her with a power she was unable to deny. Something that urged her to berate Lydia, chide her for scaring her like that; something that cried out for the girl in front of her, eyes firmly glued to the ground and shaking with the sheer force of her sobs, to make whatever pushed her to this state right. The overall affect rendered her speechless, despite her mouth opening and closing multiple times to say something, despite her expression shifting between concern, anger, and sympathy. 

Lost for words, she held the girl at arm’s length, wanting desperately to ask her “What were you thinking?” or something, something to relieve the tension and stress. To understand why. But no such words came and she was left to do the only other thing she felt there was to do. Wrap the trembling girl in her arms in a mother’s embrace. 

No amount of ceramics could have prepared her for that moment. The moment when Lydia let out a wail more ghastly, more harrowing than anything she, Adam — even that creepy demon guy who kept hanging around — could ever have mustered. The moment arms wrapped around her midsection in a grasp tighter than a vice (Barbara internally thanked her incorporeal form for her lack of ribs — allowing Lydia to grab onto her as hard as she needed to to alleviate her pain) as she became a literal lifeline to the girl. Instinctively, one hand cupped the back of the girl’s head and the other rested on her back, cradling her against her, reminding her she was there. She wasn’t leaving. 

Minutes passed them by as they remained locked in that position, until Lydia inevitably ran out of tears to cry and energy to sob. Stroking her hair gently, Barbara pulled away with all due tenderness. Lydia’s eyes remained downcast, as though the sheer weight of her emotions anchored her eyes too. That was when her chin was cupped and tilted upwards and her gaze met one of infinite care and patience. Something deep within her jerked, her bones beginning to tremble. 

“Why don’t we go inside?” Barbara inquired softly so as not to startle the poor thing, but also unwilling to remain on the roof much longer with Lydia in such a state. 

With a leaden tongue, she condemned herself to a nonverbal response in the form of an almost imperceptible nod. An encouraging smile, a hand holding her own and Lydia found herself allowing herself to be lead back into the bowels of her house- no, her home where she would be safe. Safe with Barbara and Adam, for what could be home without them. 

Into the breeze flew a note. Drifting away into abyss of space, nothing more than ink and words and intent easily dissuaded by proof that somebody cares. For as long as she lived in somebody’s heart, she would never be invisible.


End file.
